God calls because he wants you to be happy looking for him and the marvelous plan that he has thought of for you.

Father Pierre Salabert, LC

The first scene of this story takes place in a
great room. The night was long and sleep was far
from our minds. We went for the smoking while the
girls went for the fancy dresses. A night full of
contrasts. We began dinner at a luxurious hotel and we
finished with breakfast at a small town diner. We met
up at the Cathedral and we said good-bye at a
local park. My friends stayed there living life as always
while I left in search of what God was asking
of me.

I left the feast to become a priest? I
began telling you about a party because it shows where
I was in my life, on the fence, living the
life I wanted for myself yet looking at the “other
side,” at what God wanted for me.

I said good-bye to
my friends and went home, but only to pack and
leave once again. I felt a great peace because I
knew I was giving God the first place in my
life. I wanted to look for his will, and even
though it was tough I was really just following a
call that, as you will soon see, I had experienced
years before.

I knew the Legion very well. At twelve years
of age I incorporated to ECYD, Education, Culture and Youth
Development, forming a team with my friends. We were not
the most exemplary members but ECYD did fill our lives:
conventions, meetings, tournaments, apostolate, summer camps ... An endless array
of activities where we sought to share our faith and
do something good for others. We even had our own
drama club and every year we would put on a
show. We visited hospitals and orphanages, collected food, candy, toys
and clothing for the less fortunate and organized games for
younger kids. The youngest ones would always want to play
“horsie.” They were the jockeys of course!

Where ECYD helped me
the most was my friendship with our Lord Jesus Christ.
Far from being just an idea or an historic personality
Christ became a real friend. Someone who was always with
me, helping me, listening to me and always ready to
forgive me. He was THE friend I could always count
on.

ECYD was the means that God placed in my path
so that I could know him and afterwards discover his
calling. It’s not that my vocation was born there; God
just wanted to cultivate it there. Vocations just don’t appear
out of nowhere like mushrooms. One is born with a
vocation, better still, as the Holy Father teaches, every life
is a vocation. God calls because he wants you to
be happy looking for him and the marvelous plan that
he has thought of for you.

How does one discover it?
God presents it you little by little. In my case,
he started with my family. Not because I had a
relative who was a priest but because my parents taught
us that God loved us and that we should respect
and obey him. It is true that I “played Mass”
when I was little but that does not give one
a vocation to the priesthood. I also played as different
super heroes. Besides I left the “hero world” behind when
my “flying partner” broke his arm when he jumped before
I did.

Following others helped me to “take off.” My cousin
went to the seminary and I promised him that I
would join him there the next year. Well, he left
before the year was up so I couldn’t keep my
promise, but the idea of going to the seminary and
following God’s call was planted within me.

Time passed. When I
was finishing high school I needed to decide what I
wanted to do with my life. I thought that it
would be childish to hold myself to that promise I
made as a young boy, so I decided to look
elsewhere. At the same time I was afraid of starting
something that really wasn’t for me in the end, I
avoided taking it seriously.

In my heart I knew that I
was just deceiving myself and that shouldn’t just decide this
all by myself but that I should ask God what
his opinion was on the matter. So I decided to
go to a retreat in the small town of Cotija
de la Paz, Michoacan, Mexico. I spoke with my confessor
and told God: Here I am, whatever you want me
to do, dad or priest. Just help me to know
what is your will.

The battle didn’t end there. It was
time to become generous and see exactly what God was
calling me to do. Prayer, spiritual direction, moments of doubt,
interior struggles were all commonplace. I would always think: I
want to go but what happens if it’s not for
me ... then what? I was afraid of failure, of
having to come back not having finished what I started.
I didn’t want to end up like my “flying partner”
spread out on the floor with a broken arm. I
wanted to be certain, to be on solid ground instead
of jumping and taking a risk.

God gave me a little
push by means of a friend. An admirable member of
the Regnum Christi Movement told me some of his personal
experiences: “I tried as well and I have never regretted
having answered God’s call. What I am, I owe to
the Movement and the Legion. Go and give it a
try. If you come back it is not a loss;
on the contrary, the experience will only help you. Besides
you will have the great satisfaction knowing that you answered
God’s call.” The testimony of his happy and generous life
really convinced me.

I decided to give a try that summer
but the battle continued. Making the decision was only the
beginning. I would have to leave my friends, my companions,
teammates, parties ... Leaving my family was by far the
most difficult. That was tough. It was difficult for them
as well and that is why I am so grateful
to them for making that sacrifice and for believing in
God and in me. Their faith, which truly equals generosity,
has made the ties of love so much stronger, deeper
and more joyful between us.

The “yes” involves a marvelous plan
of God that leaves plenty of room for freedom.

Father Pierre
Salabert was born on April 25, 1970, in Aguascalientes, Mexico.
He was a Regnum Christi member in that city when
he entered the Legion in 1988. During his period of
formation he lived in Brazil, Spain and Rome. While in
the eternal city he studied Philosophy and Theology. He worked
in the formation of young men in schools and minor
seminaries within Mexico and Brazil and was ordained a priest
on December 22, 2001. He is currently completing his master’s
degree in moral theology in the Pontifical Regina Apostolorum College
in Rome.